Nena's Birthday Zoo Visit - August 6th, 2014
Nena celebrates her birthday with granddaughters at the zoo
First stop after sunblock application is the red panda exhibit
Inside the Carruth Natural Encounters building for the catfish
The girls brave the treacherous pirana tank
Cheyenne teases the piranas with a full hand of fingers
Fruit bat has a great dream about fruit
A peanut butter and jellyfish sandwich? No, thank you
Meercats watch David eat two ham & cheese sandwiches . . . damn!
Erin and Alex pose on the giant lady bug
David wants in and Erin takes the photo as Alex poses with daddy
Nena poses with the 4 granddaughters: Alex, Cheyenne, Savanna & Erin
Savanna and Cheyenne pose with the cobra at the Reptile house
Erin & Alex join in and daddy includes the Reptiles sign
Blanco the white alligator cools off in the pool
Australian Lace Monitor feels like posing today
Chuckwallas can be found in the US . . . exactly where we are at!
Giant waxy monkey frog looks like a new camaro
Copperhead poses nicely today, nearby coral snake hides from shame
Back out into the heat and over to the elephant pen
Alas, the baby elephant is hard to see from in the shade
Over to the elephant wading pool I've never visited before
It is like a schlitterbahn for elephants!
Is that a baby with mom or a girl and boy elephant?
Hey girls, I think it is time to move along to the next pen!
But before we depart, let's pose with the elephant statue!
Stop for snacks in the picnic area by the Duiker pen
Pen also has Gerenuks, Somali for giraffe necked
African Yellow-backed Duiker is happy for the additional shade
South African Southern Ground Hornbill rests by the fence
The south american capybara is the largest rodent in the world
Next, we enter the African Forest
Alex, Erin and Cheyenne pose with traditional masks
Erin gives hers to Savanna and then improvises
Girls rest in the village trading outpost mud huts
Gorilla statue moved over to the African Forest
A new gorilla enclosure is under construction
The girls help pace the workers by playing the drums
Alex lets another girl play the drum and have her photo taken
The gorilla viewing building is now underway
Construction complete with fences and signs removed by 2015
Erin's catches a ride to the cooled chimpanzee viewing area
Chimpanzee makes the rounds to entertain the zoo guests
Cheyenne, Savanna and Alex watch him continue his circle
Cousins stand upright and show off opposable thumbs
Rhinos find a shady corner to keep cool
Girls take advantage of the handy rhino photo op area
Conclude the african forest at the ostrich/giraffe/zebra pen
Cousins pose with the giraffe photo opportunity spot
Zoo, with cousins, on Ahma's birthday? FUN!
Check out the McGovern Water Play Park for the first time
Girls wore swim suits under their clothes, Erin checks out a dragon
Water buckets dump and the dragon sprays water
Alex stops the dragon's tail from squirting her in the face
Erin joins the group inside the circle of water jets
Cheyenne and Savanna sit under the water bucket dump
Erin just misses stepping on a directed water jet
Ahma helps the girls change back and brushes their hair
Alex and Erin sport their appropriate Camp Hope shirts today
Head toward the cats and stop for a drink from the lion fountain
Savanna has a drink while Cheyenne waits her turn
The girls check out a tiger pelt and lion paw
The tiger always hides but the lion is always napping in view
Go underneath to see the lady lions
Lioness' head is bigger than our entire Baby kitty at home
Bears walk the edge opposite the big cats
Nena poses with her granddaughters again on her birthday
David poses with cousins on the bear statue
Leopard is cool enough to pace around his enclosure today
Think I'll lie in the shade from my sign
Over to the koi pond to feed the fish with old bread
Adults relax and hydrate on the benches while the girls tempt the fish
David checks out the tropical bird house while the girls feed fish
Kingfisher watches me warily
Another animal models automobile suitable colors
I can't remember the last time I toured the tropical bird house
Owl naps the day away until night when he is active
Exit the building at the bird feeding area
Circle back around to find the girls still feeding koi at the pond
They have already used the whole loaf of bread on the koi
So no duck feeding at McGovern Lake outside the zoo then
Scenic lengthwise koi pond photo as we head toward the exit
Stop to watch the seal feeding with a small crowd
Final pose with the seal statue on the way out of the park